ODM: Uhuru not sincere on promises

By KAMAU WA MUTHONI

Kenya: The Orange Democratic Movement has faulted the President Uhuru Kenyatta’s first State of the Nation address saying he did not give the real face of the country. 

The opposition says that it is still unclear if the president and his deputy Willaim Ruto will deliver their manifesto of economic growth.

The party officials accuse the Jubilee Government of dealing with crucial public matters casually, condoning corruption and disobeying other arms of government.

“Honestly the country has regressed from where it was in the last years. With this government we are uncertain where we are headed to, the high cost of living, insecurity, corruption, the government has gone back to the “shoot to kill” and now their slogan of kusema na kutenda has been kusema na kusema na kutotenda. We need urgent and concrete actions from the government to grow this country,” said Kisumu Senator Anyang Nyong’o.

ODM says the country needs a clear roadmap on job creation to absorb millions of people languishing at home.

The party officials said Jubilee must use its numerical strength in National Assembly and Senate to come up with administrative, regulatory and legislative measures to help small firms to grow..

ODM regretted that the Jubilee administration has not effectively addressed insecurity in the country.

They said the wave of crime is threatening to cripple the 24 hours economy in the Central Business District.

“The smell of death is so common even that our elephants, rhinos and squirrels are not safe,” said Budalang’I MP Ababu Namwamba.

ODM demanded that the Jubilee administration gives a timeline  when Kenya Defence Forces will be withdrawn from Somalia.

Prof Nyong’o said: “We must talk about our military whose prowess we are all proud of. Because of the courage of our military, Somalia is a much better place today. We know that Somalia still has persistent insurgency to deal with and it continues to be the magnet of international terrorists but we feel it is now the time that the Government should give us a clear plan for ending our presence in Somalia.”

Boosting intelligence

He urged the government to establish an effective intelligence system.

On education, ODM said the laptop project is unrealistic and cannot last for long. They urged the government to build computer laboratories first before they acquire laptops.

“The big question is whether the laptops will actually improve learning, will reading skills improve because children have laptops instead of textbooks, will the parents afford the cost of repairs and maintenance when they cannot afford daily upkeep of the child, who will replace crashed or lost and stolen laptop?” posed Nyong’o . The party accused the Jubilee Government of rewarding allies and ignoring other tribes.

 “Every appointment to a public position has been handed down as a gift to supporters, along tribal lines and party lines,” said Nyong’o

Ababu said that the conflicting figures given by the Government on the wage bill will not offer a resolute way on projections to grow the economy at six per cent. 

“Where are the estimates coming from? The government is giving different versions of money in its estimates. They talk of Sh5 billion, then on their budget policy statement they have put Sh300 billion and the National Treasury is talking about Sh483 billion, now which is which?” asked Namwamba.

The party claimed that the Kenyatta and Ruto Government has performed dismally compared to the Kibaki and Raila grand coalition government.

Asked if they have played their role as the opposition party to ensure that the Government delivers its promises to Kenyans, the party officials said that, “Do not blame ODM on the Jubilee’s dismal performance.”